Health officials are investigating after 47 birds fell from the sky in Boston’s Dorchester neighborhood on Thursday.
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A cat had also fallen sick, Dot Joyce, a spokeswoman for the Animal Rescue League of Boston, told the paper.
According to the ARL: 12 of the grackles were found dead; eight perished en route to the shelter; another 12 have since been euthanized “due to their poor condition”; and 15 remain in good health, under the care of its veterinary team.
The city’s Inspectional Services Department (ISD) said in a statement Friday afternoon that inspectors believe three cats may have been affected as well.
Willien Pugh, 67, who lives on Bakersfield Street, first reported the incident to the city, according to the Boston Globe, after her outdoor cat had become sick and died. Could it be a virus that they got very quickly?
“We’re not sure what’s going on, if it’s an environmental toxin, or it’s some disease that’s being spread around the birds”, said Danielle Genter of the Animal Rescue League.
Joyce said tests will be done on the dead birds.
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Multiple state and city agencies were working to determine the cause. “We took the cat from outside and we thought it was a girl so we named it Sally-then when we took it to the vet, we found out it was a boy, so we started calling her Sally B”, she said.
